CONN 

s 

43 

.E22 

no.237 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2011  with  funding  from 

LYRASIS  members  and  Sloan  Foundation 


http://www.archive.org/details/controlofwhitepiOOfill 


1-Aa^'  3    »2  57  ^^2 


Connecticut  Agricultural 
Experiment  Station 


NEW  HAVEN,  CONN. 


BULLETIN  237  FEBRUARY,    1922 

Forestry  Publication  No.   13 


Control  of  White  Pine  Blister 
Rust  in  Connecticut 

1909-1921 

By  W.  O.   FILLEY,  Forester  and  H.  W.  HICOCK,  Assistant 


CONTENTS 

Page 

Introduction  305 

Importance  of  White  Pine 306 

History  of  the  Disease  308 

Life  Cycle 309 

Legislation    311 

Control  1909-1921  312 

Future  Control  Work  320 

National  Situation 321 

New  Investigations  by  Botanical  Department  322 

Survey  of  White  Pine  in  Connecticut * 323 


Published  by  the  Connecticut  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  in 
cooperation  with  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  U.  S.  Department  of 
Agriculture. 

The  Bulletins  of  this   Station  are  mailed  free  to  citizens  of  Connecticut 
who  apply  for  them,  and  to  other  applicants  as  far  as  the  editions  permit. 


CONNECTICUT  AGRICULTURAL   EXPERIMENT   STATION 

OFFICERS  AND  STAFF 

February,  1922 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL. 
His  Excellency,  Everett  J.  Lake,  ex-officio,  President. 

James  H.  Webb,  Vice  President Hamden 

George  A.  Hopson,  Secretary Mt.  Carmel 

E.  H.  Jenkins,  Director  and  Treasurer New  Haven 

Joseph  W.  Alsop Avon 

Charles  R.  Treat  Orange 

Elijah  Rogers Southington 

Edward  C.  Schneider  Middletown 

STAFF. 
Administration.  E.  H.  Jenkins,  Ph.D.,  Director  and  Treasurer. 

Miss  V.  E.  Cole,  Librarian  and  Stenographer. 

Miss  L.  M.  Brautlecht,  Bookkeeper  and  Stenographer. 

Miss  J.  V.  Berger,  Stenographer. 

William  Veitch,  In  charge  of  Buildings  and  Grounds. 

Chemistry: 

Analytical  Laboratory.  E.  Monroe  Bailey,  Ph.D.,  Chemist  in  Charge. 

R.  E.  Andrew,  M.A.  ] 

C.   E.   Shepaed,  H.  D.  Edmond,  B.S.      \     ,     ■  r~,       ■ 

„  T     XT  T>  iM  /"  Assistant  Chemists. 

Owen  L.  Nolan,     Richard  Merwin,    ( 

Harry  J.  Fisher,  B.A.  / 

Frank  Sheldon,  Laboratory  Assistant. 

V.  L.  Churchill,  Sampling  Agent. 

Miss  Alta  H.  Moss,  Clerk. 

Biochemical 

Laboratory.  T.  B.  Osborne,  Ph.D.,  Sc.D.,  Chemist  in  Charge. 

Botany.  G.  P.  Clinton,  Sc.D.,  Botanist  in  Charge. 

E.  M.  Stoddard,  B.S.  Pomologist. 
Miss  Florence  A.  McCormick,  Ph.D.,  Pathologist. 
G.  E.  Graham,  Assistant. 
Mrs.  W.  W.  Kelsey,  Stenographer. 

Entomology.  W.  E.   Britton,  Ph.D.,  Entomologist  in  Charge;    State  Ento- 

mologist. 
B.  H.  Walden,  B.Agr.,  M.  P.  Zappe,  B.S.,    \  Assistant 
Philip  Garman,  Ph.D.  f     Entomologists. 

John  T.  Ashworth,  Deputy  in  Charge  of  Gipsy  Moth  Work. 
Samuel  T.  Sealy,  Deputy  in  Charge  of  Mosquito  Control. 
Miss  Gladys  M,  Finley,  Stenographer. 

Forestry.        4  Walter  O.  Filley,  Forester  in  Charge. 

A.  E.  Moss,  M.F.,  Assistant. 
H.  W.  Hi  cock,  M.F.,  Assistant. 
Miss  Pauline  A.  Merchant,  Stenographer. 

Plant  Breeding.  Donald  F.  Jones,  S.D.,  Plant  Breeder  in  Charge. 

P.  C.  Mangelsdorf,  B.S.,  Assistant. 
In  charge  of  the 

Tobacco  Station.  G.  H.  Chapman,  Ph.D.,  Windsor,  Conn. 


^^Commeracl  yvhite  pi/ye. 

■fr  low/js  wAere /n/i?cf/o/).!  on  ff/l'es /jaye  been  ^t/nd 

O  Tonrns  tvAere  w/ecf/hns  o/?  /jai/'yep/ne /laye  ^een  fot//)d  ^        j      r-      ^t. 

®  ToiV/JJ  tv^ere  //?:/ec7/i>os  0/7  //fppoi-'&c/ fwe  Aat^e  Aeen  7vi//7i/.  aff,ce  of  Me  fcre^sr^r 


SURVET 

WHITEPINE' BLISTER  RUST 

CONNECTICUT 
\^o^  -  1521 


Pffemi'fr,  /^2/. 


Control  of  White  Pine  Blister  Rust  in 
Connecticut 

For  a  number  of  years  it  has  been  evident  that  the  future  of 
the  eastern  white  pine  forests  depends  on  the  control  of  a  fungous 
disease  known  as  the  white  pine  bhster  rust.  The  purpose  of  this 
bulletin  is  to  furnish  information  regarding  this  disease,  its  preva- 
lence in  Connecticut,  and  the  practicability  of  control  methods.  In 
order  to  emphasize  the  necessity  of  protecting  white  pine  growth 
from  a  very  serious  menace,  a  report  on  the  value  of  white  pine 
timber  in  the  state  is  included. 

In  1916  the  rust  was  found  in  all  the  New  England  States,  New 
York,  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Wisconsin,  Minnesota  and 
Ontario,  Canada.  All  these  states  have  taken  nieasures  to  study 
and  control  the  disease,  and  the  Connecticut  General  Assembly 
of  1917  passed  the  following  legislation  for  that  purpose. 

"The  director  of  the  Connecticut  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  shall 
have  authority  to  investigate  and  control  the  fungous  disease  known  as  white 
pine  blister  rust  or  currant  rust.  Said  director  may  appoint  a  member  or 
members  of  the  experiment  station  staff  to  administer  such  work  under  his 
direction,  and  may  employ  other  assistance  when  necessary.  All  white  pine, 
currants  or  gooseberries  infected  with  said  rust  may  be  uprooted  and 
destroyed  forthwith.  Said  director  may  designate  districts  within  which 
currant  or  gooseberry  bushes  growing  wild,  abandoned  or  escaped  from 
cultivation  may  be  uprooted  and  destroyed  under  his  direction,  and  in  the 
performance  of  his  duties,  he  or  any  person  authorized  by  him,  may  at  any 
time  enter  any  public  or  private  grounds,  and  any  person  wilfully  hindering 
the  performance  of  such  duty  shall  be  fined  not  less  tlian  ten  nor  more  than 
fifty  dollars  for  each  offense.  The  sum  of  seven  thousand  five  hundred 
dollars  is  appropriated  annually  for  carrying  out  the  provisions  ^f  this 
section."     (General  Statutes  of  1918,  Section  21 17.) 

The  discovery  of  the  rust  in  Connecticut  in  1909  resulted  in 
immediate  study  of  its  nature  and  occurrence.  This  was  made 
by  members  of  the  Experiment  Station  staff,  all  needed  equipment 
being  furnished  by  the  Station.  In  191 6  it  became  apparent  that 
active  measures  for  the  control  of  the  disease  should  be  undertaken 
as  soon  as  possible,  in  addition  to  a  continuation  of  the  studies 
already  begun. 

Under  an  agreement  with  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture,  federal  funds  for  cooperative 
control  work  were  received  in  1916  and  have  been  available  each 
year  since.  The  disease  has  thus  been  under  observation  for 
twelve  years,  and  for  the  last  six  years  considerable  control  work 
has  been  done  in  cooperation  with  the  Federal  Government. 
Under  the   agreement  mentioned   the  amount  of    federal    funds 


3o6  CONNECTICUT    EXPERIMENT    STATION    BULLETIN    237. 

expended  to  September  30,  1921  was  $12,124.44,  while  the  total 
amount  expended  by  the  State  was  $24,080.11. 

The  work  of  the  Experiment  Station  on  the  disease  has  been 
carried  on  jointly  by  the  forestry  and  botanical  departments ;  the 
former  having  charge  of  the  administration  of  funds  and  of  the 
active  control  measures,  the  latter  in  charge  of  research  and 
investigations. 

The  control  work  has  been  on  an  experimental  basis  for  the 
past  six  years.  The  disease  develops  comparatively  slowly  and 
three  or  more  years  must  elapse  before  the  effects  of  control  are 
fully  apparent.  It  was  necessary  to  test  and  compare  various 
field  methods  to  determine  which  would  accomplish  the  desired 
results  at  a  minimum  cost.  Much  has  been  learned  regarding  the 
rust  and  its  control.  It  can  now  be  confidently  stated  that  the 
eradication  of  currant  and  gooseberry  bushes  to  a  distance  of 
1,000  feet  from  white  pine  will,  in  most  cases,  adequately  protect 
the  pine  from  the  disease.  The  eradication  of  Ribes  is  practicable, 
even  in  regions  where  the  wild  species  are  abundant,  and  the  work 
can  be  done  by  land  owners  at  a  comparatively  low  cost. 

A  detailed  report  of  studies  by  Doctors  Clinton  and  McCormick 
of  the  botanical  department  on  new  points  in  the  life  history  of 
the  fungus  appeared  in  Bulletin  214  of  the  Connecticut  Agricul- 
tural Experiment  Station,  but  in  order  that  the  present  bulletin 
may  be  as  complete  as  possible,  a  resume  of  these  studies  is 
included. 

The  Importance  of  White  Pine. 

At  the  time  of  settlement  of  this  country  by  Europeans,  the 
northeastern  United  States  from  Maine  to  Minnesota  and  from 
southern  Canada  to  West  Virginia  (even  as  far  south  as  Georgia 
along*the  mountain  tops)  contained  many  virgin  stands  of  eastern 
white  pine  (Pinus  sirobus),  both  pure  and  in  mixture  with  hard- 
woods. The  forests  were  valuable  to  the  early  settlers  only  for 
fuel  and  for  building  materials.  Implements  for  working  up  logs 
into  boards,  shingles  and  framing  pieces  were  comparatively  crude, 
and  only  trees  which  could  be  worked  up  easily  were  selected. 
Chief  among  these  was  white  pine.  Evidence  of  this  is  to  be 
found  in  the  older  New  England  houses  today.  Built  almost 
entirely  of  white  pine  except  for  the  frame,  and  many  of  them 
unpainted,  these  houses  have  withstood  the  elements  for  nearly 
three  hundred  years  and  are  still  habitable.  White  pine  was  there- 
fore one  of  the  first  woods  to  enter  into  the  domestic  life  of  our 
forefathers  and  it  played  an  important  part  in  the  early  develop- 
ment of  New  England. 

The  demand  for  wood  in  various  forms  has  increased  manv 
fold  in  the  last  three  centuries.     For  a  considerable  number  of 


CONTROL    OF    WHITE    PINE    BLISTER    RUST.  307 

these  uses  white  pine  has  been  the  first  choice,  as  it  always  will  be 
if  obtainable.  Many  woods  have  been  substituted  for  it  but  few 
have  proved  as  satisfactory.  Inroads  on  the  white  pine  stands  by 
lumbering'  and  fire  have  been  enormous,  so  that  today  the  annual 
cut  is  far  less  than  the  demand  and  is  diminishing  each  year. 

From  this  brief  description  of  the  past  and  present  status  of 
white  pine,  let  us  glance  into  the  future  to  see  what  part  this 
valuable  tree  is  to  play  in  the  forest  production  of  northeastern 
United  States,  and  more  specifically  of   Connecticut. 

A  plentiful  supply  of  low  priced  lumber  is  essential  for  the 
prosperity  of  any  community.  This  is  particularly  true  of  an 
industrial  state  like  Connecticut.  The  ideal  condition  would  be 
for  every  community  to  produce  all  the  lumber  it  needs,  thus 
eliminating  high  freight  rates  and  stimulating  local  industry. 
Since  this  is  impracticable  in  many  cases,  the  question  arises  as 
to  what  species  will  most  fully  satisfy  the  needs  of  the  community 
and  make  it  most  nearly  self-supporting. 

The  killing  of  the  chestnut  trees  by  the  bark  disease  has  left  the 
state  practically  bereft  of  a  good  general  purpose  timber  tree.  Of 
the  many  other  native  hardwoods,  some  produce  very  valuable 
materials,  but  few  of  them  can  be  grown  profitably  because  of  the 
length  of  time  required  to  mature.  It  is  generally  conceded  by 
foresters  that  while  some  hardwood  lumber  is  essential  and  must 
be  produced,  the  bulk  of  the  lumber  in  the  northeast  must  come 
from  coniferous  trees.  Of  these,  ten  species  are  found  growing 
native  within  this  state  as  follows :  cedars,  three  species ;  spruce, 
one ;  balsam  fir,  one ;  larch,  one ;  hemlock,  one ;  and  pines,  three. 
Because  of  slow  growth,  restricted  range,  or  other  adverse  habits 
all  these  species  except  red  pine  (Piniis  resinosa)  and  white  pine 
may  be  eliminated  in  considering  the  future. 

These  two  trees  are  quite  similar  in  growth  and  habits,  although 
the  wood  of  red  pine  is  considered  to  be  slightly  inferior  to  that 
of  white  pine.  Planting  stock  of  both  species  is  easily  raised  and 
set  out.  With  regard  to  immunity  to  insects  and  fungi,  red  pine 
has  a  decided  advantage  and  it  is  less  susceptible  to  damage  by 
fire.  White  pine  is  found  throughout  most  of  the  northern  third 
of  the  state  and  if  the  species  is  favored,  its  range  may  be  greatly 
extended  without  excessive  cost.  The  range  of  red  pine,  on  the 
other  hand,  covers  only  portions  of  the  most  northerly  towns.  Its 
further  extension,  therefore,  must  be  by  planting  until  the  species 
is  more  widely  established  in  the  state. 

Dr.  Haven  Metcalf  of  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry  has  stated 
that  the  practise  of  forestry  in  New  England  and  New  York  is 
"impossible"  without  white  pine.  Perhaps  it  would  be  better  to 
say  "very  difficult."  At  any  rate  it  is  generally  conceded  that 
white  pine,  because  of  its  excellent  qualities  and  many  and  diversi- 
fied uses,  is  our  most  valuable  timber  tree.     Foresters  claim  that 


3o8         CONNECTICUT    EXPERIMENT   STATION    BULLETIN    237. 

it  is  one  of  the  few  trees  that  can  be  grown  as  a  crop  with  profit 
under  intensive  management. 

If  the  future  of  our  local  lumber  supply  depends  so  much  on 
this  one  species  surely  it  is  worth  protecting  from  fire,  insects  and 
fungi.  Fire  is  always  destructive  to  growing  timber,  and  white 
pine  is  more  susceptible  than  many  other  species.  There  are 
several  insects  which  damage  white  pine  to  some  extent,  but  these 
pests  are  either  not  very  serious  or  can  be  controlled.  Of  the 
various  fungi  parasitic  on  the  tree,  the  only  one  which  seems  to 
endanger  the  existence  of  the  species  is  that  with  which  this  report 
is  concerned. 

History  of  the  Disease. 

This  disease  is  caused  by  a  parasitic  fungus  known  to  science  as 
Cronartimn  ribicola.  It  is  classified  among  fungi  as  a  heteroecious 
rust  because  it  develops  distinct  stages  of  its  existence  on  difterent 
host  plants,  of  which  it  requires  two  for  its  development  and 
spread.     They  are : — 

a.  The  several  species  of  five  needled  pines. 

b.  The  several  species  of  currants  and  gooseberries. 

During  a  complete  life  cycle  this  rust  produces  four  different 
kinds  of  spores,  two  on  the  pine  and  two  on  the  Ribes  host.  Ribcs 
is  the  scientific  generic  name  for  the  plants  commonly  known  as 
currants  and  gooseberries,  and  in  this  report  the  term  "Ribes"  is 
used  to  designate  them. 

About  1856  Dietrich,  a  German  botanist,  reported  the  two  stages 
of  the  fungus  on  Ribes  and  on  pine  in  northwestern  Russia.  He 
evidently  did  not  recognize  that  he  had  two  forms  of  the  same  rust 
on  different  hosts.  Klebahn  of  Germany  in  1888  was  the  first  to 
prove  the  relationship  of  the  two  forms  when  he  inoculated  leaves 
of  Ribes  from  the  spore  stage  which  was  found  on  five  needled 
pines.  The  fungus  has,  therefore,  been  known  in  Europe  by 
botanists  for  many  years.  The  five  needled  pines  of  the  old  world 
are  relatively  of  small  commercial  importance  and  it  was  probably 
the  destruction  of  the  North  American  five  needled  pines,  intro- 
duced extensively  for  forest  and  ornamental  planting,  which  really 
directed  the  attention  of  Europeans  to  the  disease. 

According  to  Spaulding's  191 1  report,*  the  blister  rust  has  been 
found  on  one  or  lioth  hosts  in  Norway,  Sweden,  Denmark,  Ivussia. 
Siberia,  Austro-Hungary,  Italy,  Switzerland,  Germany,  France. 
Belgium,  Holland,  England,  Scotland  and  Japan.  Losses  as  high 
as  100  %  have  been  reported  from  Europe. 

Prof.  Tubeuf  of  Munich  wrote  a  paper  in  1905  on  the  ravages 
of  the  disease  in  Germany  on  American  white  pine,  a  tree  which 

*  Bulletin  206,  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry. 


CONTROL   OF   WHITE    PINE   BLISTER   RUST.  309 

has  been  used  there  for  forest  and  ornamental  purposes  for  two 
hundred  years.  He  also  cited  the  damage  to  nursery  stock  and 
young  reproduction,  and  the  fact  that  in  some  places  the  use  of 
this  species  has  been  abandoned  by  nurserymen  because  of  the  rust. 

Moir,  after  studying  the  disease  in  western  Europe  in  1920, 
reported*  that  in  Norway,  Sweden,  Denmark  and  Belgium  the 
use  of  white  pine  in  the  regeneration  of  forests  had  been  prac- 
tically given  up  because  of  the  rust.  Although  the  necessary  con- 
trol methods  are  well  known  there,  the  cultivated  black  currant 
(because  its  fruit  is  so  highly  prized  for  jam)  is  considered  of 
more  value  than  the  exotic  white  pine.  Moir  also  studied  the 
effects  of  the  disease  on  sugar  pine  (Pinus  lambertiana) ,  Western 
white  pine  (Pinus  monticola)  and  limber  pine  {Pinus  flexilis) 
planted  in  western  Europe  and  found  all  to  be  as  severely  damaged 
as  eastern  white  pine. 

It  is  very  difficult  to  say  just  when  the  disease  was  first  intro- 
duced into  America.  Stewart  was  the  first  to  identify  and  defi- 
nitely report  it  in  this  country.  In  1906  he  found  a  serious  infec- 
tion on  various  species  of  Ribes  at  Geneva,  N.  Y.,  although  it 
was  not  until  1912  that  it  was  discovered  on  white  pine  in  that 
region.  The  rust  was  first  reported  on  white  pine  in  1909  in 
several  of  the  eastern  states  where  seedlings  imported  from  Europe 
had  been  planted.  It  is  very  probable  that  it  had  been  brought 
into  this  country  in  small  quantities  for  many  years  previous  to 
1909  when,  as  is  now  known,  it  was  introduced  in  considerable 
quantities  on  forest  planting  stock,  chiefly  from  Heins  Nursery  in 
Germany. 

In  1908  and  1909  about  750,000  white  pine  transplants  were 
imported  from  Germany  for  forest  planting  in  Connecticut.  After 
planting  it  was  discovered  that  some  of  these  trees  were  breaking 
out  with  the  yellow  blisters,  or  aecial  stage  of  the  rust.  It  was 
first  discovered  in  April,  1909  by  Mr.  C.  A.  Metzger  on  trees 
which  he  was  planting  in  Wilton,  specimens  being  sent  by  him  to 
this  Station  for  identification. 

From  more  recent  investigations,  there  are  indications  that 
infected  pines  may  have  been  introduced  in  at  least  one  place  in 
the  state  before  the  general  introduction  of  the  rust  in  1908  and 
1909.  At  the  Bowditch  nursery  in  Pomfret,  there  is  a  small  forest 
planting  about  thirty  years  old  which  has  developed  the  disease 
for  a  number  of  years.  The  trees  are  known  to  be  of  European 
origin  and  some  of  them  appear  to  have  been  infected  prior  to  1908. 

Life  Cycle. 

As  previously  stated,  the  disease  is  a  rust  which  requires  two  ■ 
hosts  (one  of  the  five  needled  pines  and  some  species  of  Ribes)  for 

*  Bulletin  6,  American  Plant  Pest  Committee. 


3IO         CONNECTICUT    EXPERIMENT    STATION    BULLETIN    2};]. 

the  completion  of  its  life  cycle.  In  describing  this  cycle,  let  us 
assume  that  we  start  with  a  pine  which  has  become  infected  and 
is  producing-  spores.  These  spores  (aeciospores)  are  blown  to 
Ribes  leaves  in  the  spring,  from  early  in  xA.pril  until  Jvme  depending 
on  the  season.  With  proper,  atmospheric  conditions  the  parasite 
develops  in  the  leaf  and  shows  on  the  under  side  in  about  two 
weeks  as  minute  orange-yellow  pustules,  which  mature  and  break, 
giving  off  an  orange-colored  powdery  mass  of  spores  (uredo- 
spores).  This  is  the  first  spore  stage  on  Ribes.  These  uredo- 
spores  are  capable  only  of  infecting  Ribes  and  during  the  early 
part  of  the  summer  spread  the  disease  from  one  bush  to  another. 
From  midsummer  until  the  leaves  fall  the  second  spore  stage  on 
Ribes  is  produced.  This  takes  the  form  of  minute  rusty  brown 
hairs  (telia)  on  the  lower  surface  of  the  leaf.  These  hairs  are 
made  up  of  single-celled  spores  (teliospores)  which  adhere  per- 
manently together.  Often  uredospores  and  teliospores  are  both 
found  on  the  same  leaf.  The  latter  upon  germination  produce 
minute  temporary  spores  (sporidia)  which  cannot  infect  Ribes,  but 
if  carried  to  pine  needles  may  cause  infection. 

Pines  become  infected,  therefore,  only  after  telia  appear  on 
Ribes.  Doctors  Clinton  and  j\IcCormick*have  conclusively  demon- 
strated that  the  rust  enters  the  pine  host  through  the  stomata  or 
breathing  pores  of  the  needles  and  works  back  into  the  bark  and 
twig  tissues.  Needles  of  the  current  season  are  probably  more 
susceptible  to  infection  than  older  ones. 

Once  the  disease  has  entered  the  tree  it  proceeds  to  develop  para- 
sitic threads  (the  mycelium)  in  the  tissues  of  the  host.  The  first 
outward  sign  of  the  work  of  the  parasite  is  a  discoloration  of  the 
bark  to  a  yellow  or  orange-greenish  hue  accompanied  by  swelling. 
In  one'  to  several  years  after  infection  of  its  needles  the  swollen 
portion  of  the  pine  develops  what  are  known  as  pycnia.  These 
exude  on  the  bark  as  drops  of  a  sticky  fluid  containing  spores 
(pycniospores)  whose  nature  in  this  and  other  rusts  has  never 
been  fully  determined,  but  which  are  considered  b)^  some  to  be 
spores  that  have  lost  their  function.  When  these  drops  dry  out 
there  remain  on  the  bark  yellowish  spots  of  varying  shape,  which 
later  turn  a  deep  reddish  brown.     They  are  known  as  pycnial  scars. 

Usually  during  the  spring  after  pycnia  are  borne  the  fungus 
develops  the  fruiting  bodies  known  as  aecia.  These  never  appear 
until  the  third  year  after  infection  of  the  pine  needles  and  their 
development  may  be  delayed  until  the  fourth  year,  or  even  longer 
under  adverse  conditions.  Very  small  pines  are  often  killed  before 
aecia  appear  at  all.  The  aecia  are  the  orange  spore  cases,  or  blis- 
ters, which  push  through  tlie  liark  as  flattened  pustules  about  one 
fourth  of  an  inch  high.  They  soon  burst  and  send  out  a  mass  of 
aeciospores  which,  if  carried  to  Ribes,  cause  the  infection  on  the 
leaves  mentioned  at  the  beginning  of  the  life  cycle.     After  fruit- 


CONTROL    OF   WHITE    PINE    BLISTER   RUST.  31I 

iiig,  the  bark  through  which  the  pustules  have  protruded  becomes 
much  seamed  and  cracked,  often  exuding  pitch  and  frequently 
attacked  by  secondary  fungi  and  insects.  Older  infections  some- 
times show  constriction  with  swelling  above. 

Not  infrequently  a  tree  which  has  been  diseased  for  several 
years  will  show  a  number  of  distinct  zones  as  follows : 

a.  Dead,  cracked  bark  where  the  disease  has  fruited  in  previous  years. 

b.  Fruiting    pustules,   or    remnants    of    pustules,    that   have    fruited 

during  the  current  season. 

c.  Zone  of  pycnial  scars  and  pycnial  drops. 

d.  A  discolored  area  usually  surrounding  all  other  stages  and  moving 

forward  slowly  into  new  tissues  with  each  year's  growth. 

Some  important  points  to  be  noted  are: — ■ 

1.  Two  spore  stages  are  borne  on  each  host  during  the  life  cycle  of 

this  rust. 

2.  Two  hosts  must  be  present  if  the  disease  is  to  spread  from  pine 

to  pine. 

3.  Spores  from  the  stage  on  pine  cannot  directly  infect  other  pines. 

4.  The  rust  is  perennial  on  the  pine  but  not  on  the  Ribes  host. 

5.  The  fungus  may  grow  within  the  pine  host  for  a  number  of  years 

without  fruiting. 

Experiments  by  members  of  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry  and 
others  show  that  all  five  needled  pines  are  commonly  infected  by 
this  rust.  The  botanical  department  of  this  Station  has  made 
extensive  experiments  with  other  pines  and  a  summary  of  the 
results  appears  later  in  this  report.  Ribes  vary  considerably  in 
their  susceptibility  to  infection.  Black  currants  are  undoubtedly 
the  most  susceptible,  followed  closely  by  certain  wild  gooseberries, 
skunk  currants  and  cultivated  flowering  currants.  The  thick 
leaved  variety  of  cultivated  red  currant  and  certain  cultivated 
gooseberries  are  probably  the  least  susceptible  in  this  state. 

Moist,  fairly  cool  weather  is  apparently  the  most  favorable  for 
the  growth  of  the  fungus  and  the  production  of  spores.  The 
aeciospores  which  develop  on  pine  may  travel  long  distances  and 
over  large  barriers,  such  as  mountain  ranges,  without  losing  their 
quality  of  infecting  Ribes.  The  average  longevity  of  the  spores 
varies  considerably  according  to  their  kind.  The  aeciospores 
which  carry  the  disease  from  pine  to  Ribes  may  remain  alive  for 
several  months.  Dr.  H.  H.  York  has  made  tests  showing  that  with 
a  humidity  of  90  and  a  temperature  of  22-25  degrees  C.  (72°- 
yy°  Fahr.)  the  sporidia  which  carry  the  disease  from  Ribes  to 
pine  remain  viable  for  less  than  ten  minutes. 

Legislation. 

Under  the  Plant  Quarantine  Act  of  August  21,  191 2,  as 
amended  March  4,  191 7,  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  was  given 
the  power  to  "quarantine  any  state  or^territory  or  any  district  of 
the  United ' States,  bt-  any  p'ortion^'thereoi"  to  prevent  *'the  spread 
of  any  plant  disease  or  insect  infestation."     Under  this  Act  the 


312         CONNECTICUT    EXPERIMENT    STATION    BULLETIN    2^};] . 

Federal  Horticultural  Board  established  a  quarantine  against  the 
shipment  of  five  needled  pines  and  black  currants  out  of  the 
New  England  States  and  New  York,  and  against  the  shipment 
of  these  plants  from  the  states  east  of  and  including  Minne- 
sota, Iowa,  Missouri,  Arkansas  and  Louisiana  into  territory 
further  west.  Congress  also  appropriated  $300,000  for  the 
investigation  and  control  of  the  disease,  part  of  which  was  to  be 
used  cooperatively  to  balance  money  appropriated  by  the  states. 
In  1917,  the  Connecticut  legislature  passed  two  laws,  which 
.  in  brief  are  as  follows  : — 

a.  A  general  plant  pest  law  authorizing  the  Director  of  the  Connecticut 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station  to  control  insects  or  diseases  which  are,  or 
may  become,  serious  pests  to  economic  plants.  He  is  given  the  power  to 
destroy  infected  plants,  prohibit  or  regulate  transportation  of  the  same,  and 
to  establish  quarantine  in  such  areas  and  against  such  pests  as  he  may  deem 
necessary.     (G.  S.  1918,  Section  2106.) 

No  quarantine  against  Blister  Rust  has  ever  been  put  into  effect 
in  this  state. 

b.  A  Blister  Rust  law  authorizing  the  Director  of  the  Connecticut  Agri- 
cultural Experiment  Station  to  control  the  White  Pine  Blister  Rust.  He  is 
given  the  power  to  order  white  pines,  and  currant  and  gooseberry  plants  to 
be  unrooted  and  destroyed.     (G.  S.  1918,  Section  21 17.) 

This  latter  act  authorizes  an  expenditure  of  $7,500  per  year  for 
the  control  of  Blister  Rust. 

Control  ipop-ipi^. 

As  was  previously  stated,  750,000  imported  white  pine  trees 
were  introduced  into  Connecticut  in  1908-1909.  Records  of  their 
distribution  were  available  at  the  Experiment  Station  and  soon 
after  the  infection  on  pine  was  discovered  at  Wilton  by  Mr.  IVIetz- 
ger  in  April,  1909,  most  of  the  plantations  originating  from  this 
stock  were  examined  by  members  of  the  station  staff",  and  by  Drs. 
Spaulding  and  Graves  representing  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry. 
In  addition  to  the  infection  in  Wilton,  five  plantations  were  found 
to  contain  from  one  to  several  infections  and  five  others  had  a  few 
suspicious  trees.  The  above  eleven  plantations  and  a  number  of 
others  were  inspected  in  1910  and  in  subsequent  years.  As  no 
further  signs  of  the  rust  were  found,  it  was  concluded  that  all  the 
infected  trees  were  either  destroyed  or  had  died.  The  importation 
of  foreign  planting"  stock  was  discouraged  by  the  forestry  depart- 
ment of  the  Station  after  191  o.  In  191 2  one  lot  of  stock  received 
from  Holland  by  a  commercial  nursery  contained  so  many  diseased 
trees  that  all  were  ordered  destroyed  liy  the  state  nursery  inspector. 

The  rust  was  found  on  Ribes  in  Meriden  in  1912  and  again  in 
1916.     In  the  summer  and  fall  of  19 15,  the  state  nursery  inspector 


CONTROL    OF    WHITE    PINE    BLISTER    RUST.  313 

of  Massachusetts  reported  many  infections  on  Ribes  in  that  state 
close  to  the  Connecticut  line,  and  one  over  the  line  in  the  town  of 
North  Canaan.  Infections  reported  from  other  states  indicated 
that  the  rust  had  become  well  established  in  this  country  and  dur- 
ing the  following  winter  (1915-1916)  plans  were  made  for  coop- 
eration between  the  Connecticut  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 
and  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry  for  more  thorough  scouting  to 
determine  how  serious  the  infection  might  be. 


Control  ipid. 

Under  this  cooperative  agreement  the  salaries  of  extra  men 
were  paid  by  the  Federal  Government  and  their  expenses  paid 
by  the  State.  The  station  forester,  then  ex-ofiicio  state  forester, 
was  placed  in  charge  and  other  station  employees  were  used  on 
the  work  during  all  or  part  of  the  season.  No  state  funds  were 
available  except  the  appropriation  for  the  care  of  state  forests,  a 
part  of  which  was  used.  Ten  extra  men  were  employed  for  vary- 
ing periods  from  May  i  to  September  30. 

During  May  and  June  two  crews  inspected  eighty  plantations 
and  sixteen  nurseries  where  there  was  reason  to  think  that  the 
disease  might  exist.  Infected  trees  were  found  in  ten  plantations 
in  Wilton,  Huntington,  Groton,  Middlebury,  Woodbury,  Corn- 
wall, Litchfield  (2)  and  Norfolk  (2).  Only  in  Norfolk  was  there 
any  sign  of  the  disease  having  spread  from  its  point  of  introduc- 
tion, but  there  numerous  secondary  infections  on  native  pines 
were  found  and  destroyed.  Wild  Ribes  were  very  plentiful  and 
on  June  15  the  first  fruiting  stage  was  found  on  this  host.  By 
July  I  it  was  too  late  to  prevent  the  spread  of  the  disease  from 
pine  and  for  the  rest  of  the  season,  using  the  infected  plantations 
as  a  center,  a  crew  of  six  men  worked  on  the  eradication  of  Ribes. 
They  removed  and  destroyed  many  thousand  wild  and  escaped 
Ribes  in  an  area  of  approximately  three  square  miles. 

In  addition,  cultivated  Ribes  were  inspected  over  a  large  terri- 
tory. It  was  thus  determined  that  the  infected  area  included  about 
forty-five  square  miles  inside  a  triangle  with  its  apexes  at  Canaan 
Valley,  North  Colebrook  and  South  Norfolk.  Eradication  was 
discontinued  in  September  and  several  of  the  men  were  used  to 
scout  the  state  for  Ribes  infections.  During  the  entire  season 
scouting  was  done  in  no  of  the  168  towns.  Infections  were 
found  in  65,  of  which  only  20  were  west  of  the  Connecticut  River. 
The  infections  in  these  20  towns  were  widely  scattered  except  in 
northern  Litchfield  County.  In  the  45  towns  east  of  the  river  the 
infections  were  more  numerous  but  could  not  be  attributed  to  any 
known  center  of  pine  infection. 


314         COXXECTICUT    EXPERIMENT    STATIOX    BULLETIN    2},"] . 

Control  1917. 

From  the  work  in  1916  it  was  apparent  that  the  bhster  rust  had 
become  well  estal^lished  and  that  special  funds  would  be  needed  to 
control  the  disease.  Five  thousand  dollars  was  granted  by  the 
legislature  for  immediate  use  and  ten  thousand  dollars  for  the 
two  years  ending  September  30,  1919.  The  Director  of  the 
Experiment  Station,  being  charged  with  the  execution  of  the  law, 
delegated  the  direct  supervision  to  the  forestry  department.  The 
botanical  department  took  charge  of  the  identification  of  speci- 
mens and  investigational  work. 

The  labor  situation  in  the  spring  of  1917  was  rather  acute,  but 
the  early  closing  of  the  Connecticut  Agricultural  College  to  release 
students  for  agricultural  work  made  available  a  number  of  men 
for  blister  rust  control.  In  all  thirty-two  men  were  employed  in 
this  work  but  during  the  latter  part  of  the  summer  many  of  the 
men  left  to  enter  some  branch  of  military  service,  and  for  this 
reason  the  periods  of  service  varied  considerably.  As  in  1916  the 
Bureau  of  Plant  Industry  cooperated  by  paying  the  salaries  of 
extra  men  employed.     The  plan  of  work  was  as  follows: — 

a.  Inspection  of  pine  plantations  throughout  the  state. 

b.  Scouting  for  the  disease  on  Ribes. 

c.  Eradication  of  Ribes  at  Norfolk. 

In  May  and  June  two  crews  found  infections  in  eighteen  planta- 
tions, eight  of  which  had  been  located  in  1916.  the  remaining"  ten 
being  found  for  the  first  time  in  191 7.  Two  plantations  and  one 
nursery  in  which  infected  pines  were  found  in  191 6  seemed  to  be 
clean  the  following  year.  No  infected  stock,  either  pine  or  Ribes, 
was  found  in  any  nursery  in  the  state,  although  inspections  were 
made  both  in  the  spring  and  in  the  fall. 

The  most  serious  infection  discovered  outside  of  Norfolk  was 
that  on  the  Bowditch  estate  in  Pomfret.  Here  the  infected  trees 
were  over  twenty  3'ears  old  and  had  evidently  borne  the  rust  for 
some  time,  but  conditions  were  not  favorable  for  its  spread,  as 
there  is  almost  no  native  pine  in  this  region  and  wild  Ril^es  are 
very  scarce. 

To  facilitate  scouting  for  infection  on  Ribes,  the  state  was 
divided  into  ten  districts  with  a  scout  for  each.  These  scouts 
inspected  Ribes  in  yards  and  along  roads  in  their  respective  dis- 
tricts once  in  two  weeks  and  in  this  way  kept  track  of  any  new 
infections  that  developed.  A  supervisor  of  scouts  visited  each 
district  and  spent  a  day  with  the  scout  about  twice  a  month. 

The  most  important  result  of  this  scouting  was  the  finding  of 
the  pine  infection  center  in  Pomfret.  Its  presence  was  suspected 
from  the  early  and  general  infection  of  Ribes  reported  by  the 
scout  in  that  vicinity.     I')y  a  careful  inspection  of  jilanted  pine  he 


PLATE  XXIII. 


a.     Primary    infection    on    imported 
pine. 


b.     Telial    stage    on    Ribes. 


c.     Pycnial    stage    on   pine.  d.     Aecial  stage  on  pine. 

WHITE   PINE  BLISTER  RUST. 


PLATE  XXIV. 


n 


► 


Aatural  reproduction  in  Cornwall. 


b.     riantaliuns  in  Ali(,K!li.'l)iiry. 
FUTURE  WHITE    PINE   FOREST. 


PLATE  XXV. 


O 


o 


PLATE  XXVI. 


_-      o 


X 


CONTROL    OF    WHITE    PINE    BLISTER    RUST.  315 

was  able  to  locate  a  center  of  infection  on  the  Bowditch  estate. 
The  Ribes  infections  in  other  parts  of  the  state,  with  one  excep- 
tion, were  too  scattering  to  indicate  infection  centers  close  at 
hand.  The  exception  was  in  the  vicinity  of  Branford  where  there 
seemed  reason  to  suspect  the  presence  of  pine  infection,  but  a 
careful  search  failed  to  show  any. 

Control  work  was  again  confined  to  the  Norfolk  region,  for 
nowhere  else  was  there  evidence  that  the  disease  had  spread  to 
pines  outside  the  infection  center.  The  control  areas  selected 
covered  about  ten  square  miles  in  the  northern  half  of  the  town. 
Work  with  two  crews  was  begun  May  12th  and'  another  was 
organized  in  July.  Early  in  the  season  an  attempt  was  made  to 
locate  and  remove  pine  infections  on  those  areas  from  which 
Ribes  was  eradicated  the  previous  year.  Six  hundred  acres  were 
covered  in  this  way  but  the  work  was  slow  and  expensive.  The 
average  cost  of  $1.80  per  acre  did  not  seem  justified  when  com- 
pared with  the  much  lower  cost  of  removing  Ribes  the  previous 
year.  Moreover,  it  is  never  possible  to  detect  with  certainty  all 
pine  infections,  since  some  of  them  may  be  so  well  hidden  as  to  be 
overlooked,  while  others  may  not  be  sufficiently  developed  to  be 
recognizable. 

Systematic  scouting  for  pine  infection  was  therefore  abandoned 
and  during  the  rest  of  the  season  Ribes  were  eradicated  from 
about  three  thousand  acres  at  an  average  cost  of  85  cents  per  acre. 
While  no  accurate  count  was  kept  of  the  Ribes  removed,  the 
number  varied  from  many  thousand  per  acre  in  some  of  the 
swamps  to  almost  none  on  the  hardv/ood  ridges.  The  cost 
naturally  varied  with  the  character  of  the  land  and  the  abundance 
of  Ribes.  From  ^o^/c  to  60%  of  all  Ribes  destroyed  showed 
infection. 

Infection  on  Ribes  was  found  to  be  fairly  general,  not  only  in 
the  control  area  but  for  some  distance  east  and  west  in  the  tov/ns 
of  Colebrook  and  Canaan.  The  various  species  of  Ribes  found 
in  the  order  of  abundance  were  as  follows : — Cynosbati  var. 
glahratum,  oxyacanthoides,  vulgare,  prostratum,  nigrum,  odo- 
ratum,  Cynosbati,  rotimdifoliiim-,  gracile,  triste  var.  albinervium, 
and  Americanum. 

Control  igi8. 

On  account  of  war  conditions  which  prevailed  in  1918  practically 
no  eradication  work  v/as  attempted.  Members  of  the  Station 
staff  inspected  pine  and  Ribes  in  difl:erent  parts  of  the  state 
throughout  the  summer.  Two  extra  men  were  employed  in  Nor- 
folk to  check  over  areas  previously  worked,  widi  gratifying  results. 
On  one  and  one-half  square  miles  of  territory  worked  in  igi^: 
only  38.6  JRibes  were  found,  or  about  one  for  each  two  acres.'" 


3l6         CONNECTICUT    EXPERIMENT    STATION    BULLETIN    237. 

From  May  i  to  September  i  selected  red  and  black  currant 
bushes  were  sprayed  at  ten  day  intervals  with  4-4-50  Bordeaux 
mixture  to  determine  the  possibility  of  controlling  the  disease  on 
Ribes  by  spraying.  Unsprayed  bushes  were  used  as  checks.  The 
results  indicated  that  it  might  be  possible  to  hold  the  disease  in 
check  on  Ribes  by  frequent  spraying,  but  that  the  frequency 
required  would  make  the  plan  impracticable. 

As  previously  mentioned,  infections  on  cultivated  Ribes  found 
in  the  town  of  Branford  in  1916  aroused  the  suspicion  of  a  pine 
infection  nearby.  Infected  Ribes  were  plentiful  at  three  places 
and  at  two  of  these  all  bushes  were  destroyed  soon  after  discovery. 
The  black  currant  bushes  at  the  remaining  place  were  inspected  at 
frequent  intervals,  as  were  the  few  pines  in  the  neighborhood, 
but  without  result.  The  nearest  known  pine  infection  was  at 
Middlebury,  some  thirty  miles  away.  In  September  1918  an 
intensive  survey  was  made  of  all  cultivated  Ribes  within  three 
miles  of  the  infected  black  currants.  Of  201  places  visited  73  had 
Ribes  and  infection  was  found  at  13,  but  the  infections  were  too 
widely  scattered  to  indicate  the  presence  of  a  pine  infection  center. 

Nine  plantations  and  one  nursery  were  inspected  in  1918.  In 
six  plantations  fruiting  infections  were  found,  while  in  two  others 
there  were  specimens  apparently  killed  by  the  rust.  One  new 
infection  was  found  in  the  town  of  Greenwich  in  a  plantation 
which  had  not  previously  been  inspected. 

During  the  summer  practically  all  the  scattered  Ribes  infections 
located  in  191 7  were  visited  at  least  once.  A  decrease  in  the 
number  of  infections  was  evident  as  compared  with  the  previous 
year.  Considerable  time  was  spent  in  July  and  August  inspecting 
Ribes  in  the  southwest  corner  of  the  state,  but  infections  were  not 
sufficiently  abundant  to  indicate  the  presence  of  unknown  pine 
infections. 


Control  1919. 

From  inspections  in  previous  years  it  was  apparent  that  many 
of  the  plantations  of  imported  pine  were  in  no  danger  from  the 
rust,  and  these  were  consequently  eliminated  from  the  inspection 
of  1919.  Six  plantations  were  inspected  and  the  disease  was  found 
in  five,  but  only  in  small  amounts  and  with  no  indication  that  it 
was  spreading. 

Eradication  of  Ribes  was  resumed  May  i  on  areas  in  Norfolk 
and  Colebrook  adjoining  those  worked  in  191 7.  During  the  sum- 
mer a  crew  of  five  men  covered  about  2,500  acres  and  destroyed 
30,000  wild  Ribes  bushes.  The  cost  of  eradication  averaged  93 
cents  per  acre,  including  wages,  sustenance,  supervision,  transpor- 
tation and  depreciation  of  equipment. 

Checks  were  made  to  determine  the  efficiencv  of  the  crew  in 


CONTROL    OF   WHITE    PINE   BLISTER   RUST.  317 

eradicating  Ribes.  Four  tracts  worked  earlier  in  the  season  were 
selected  and  a  portion  of  each  reworked.  The  results  showed  that 
the  crew  removed  an  average  of  90%)  of  all  Ribes  during  the 
first  working  of  the  ground. 

During  June  scouting  for  infection  on  cultivated  Ribes  in  24 
towns  in  Tolland,  Windham  and  New  London  Counties  showed 
infection  in  four  towns,  but  only  at  places  where  it  had  been 
found  in  previous  years.  Later  in  the  summer  nine  towns  in 
Litchfield  County  were  scouted  in  the  same  manner  and  Ribes 
infection  was  found  to  be  quite  general. 

The  survey  of  the  Branford  area  which  was  made  in  1918  (see 
page  316)  was  checked  up  in  1919.  All  but  two  places  showing 
infection  on  Ribes  in  1918  showed  it  in  1919,  and  one  new  infec- 
tion was  found.  »A11  white  pines  in  the  area  were  inspected  for 
infections  but  none  found. 

In  order  to  determine  the  spread  of  the  disease  in  Pomfret,  a 
survey  covering  about  30  square  miles  adjoining  the  Bowditch 
estate  was  made  in  July  and  August,  1919.  All  pine  plantations 
and  cultivated  Ribes  in  the  region  were  inspected  and  mapped. 
Eighteen  separate  infections  on  Ribes  were  found,  but  no  pine 
infection  except  at  the  Bowditch  estate.  Here  the  scout  eradicated 
a  large  number  of  escaped  Ribes  bushes  in  and  near  the  pine 
grove.     Wild  Ribes  are  very  scarce  in  this  vicinity. 

In  cooperation  with  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  a  pine  survey 
of  the  state  was  begun  in  December,  1919.  Its  purpose  was  to 
obtain  information  regarding  the  amount  and  value  of  white  pine 
in  the  state  and  to  demonstrate  the  importance  of  protecting  it 
from  the  rust.  One  man  was  employed  until  June,  1920,  mapping 
the  pine  lands  of  Windham,  New  London  and  eastern  Tolland 
Counties,  reporting  on  the  age,  area,  percentage  of  pine  in  mixture, 
quantity  in  board  feet  and  value  of  all  stands  containing  pine. 

Control  ip20. 

Labor  suitable  for  this  work  was  difficult  to  obtain  until  after 
the  schools  and  colleges  closed,  when  twelve  men  were  secured 
and  put  in  the  field.  The  area  selected  for  eradication  consisted 
of  about  2,000  acres  in  the  town  of  Colebrook,  east  of  that  eradi- 
cated in  1919.  Forty  three  thousand  Ribes  bushes  were  removed 
and  destroyed.  Checks  run  frequently,  according  to  methods  pre- 
scribed by  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  showed  that  the  men 
were  getting  90%  to  97%  of  all  Ribes  during  the  first  trip  over 
the  ground. 

As  in  former  years  inspection  of  cultivated  Ribes  was  carried 

.  out  to  determine  the  approximate  limits  of  the  disease.     In  1920 

this  work  was  confined  to  Litchfield  County  where  infection  on 

Ribes  was  found  to  be  quite  general.     No  attempt  was  made  to 


3l8  CONNECTICUT    EXPERIMENT    STATION    BULLETIN    237. 

check  over  either  the  Branford  or  the  Pomfret  areas  during  the 
season,  nor  was  there  any  inspection  of  plantations. 

Work  on  the  pine  survey,  started  in  1919,  was  resumed  in 
November,  1920  and  a  new  Hne  of  work,  the  scouting  of  native 
white  pine  for  infection,  undertaken.  This  seemed  necessary 
because  of  the  amount  of  Ribes  infection  found  throughout  the 
state  for  a  number  of  years.  The  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry  fur- 
nished one  man  for  the  survey  and  two  for  the  scouting.  The 
two  lines  of  work  were  carried  on  simultaneously,  as  this  method 
was  considered  more  efficient  than  to  cover  the  ground  twice  for 
mapping  and  scouting.  The  cost  of  the  survey  was  2  cents  per 
acre  for  the  area  actually  mapped  and  about  3  mills  per  acre 
for  the  entire  area  covered.  The  men  located  infections  on  native 
pine  in  the  towns  of  Cornwall,  Barkhamsted,  and  North  Canaan, 
as  well  as  many  new  infections  in  Norfolk  and  Colebrook.  (For 
results  of  the  survey  see  page  321.) 

Owing  to  the  fact  that  infection  had  been  found  on  Ribes  in 
the  vicinity  of  Branford  for  a  number  of  years,  this  region  was 
again  scouted  for  infections  on  pine  previous  to  the  start  of  the 
regular  scouting  and  survey  work.  All  pines,  both  native  and 
ornamental,  in  the  neighborhood  of  known  Ribes  infections  were 
carefully  looked  over,  but  not  a  single  pine  infection  was  found. 

Control  ip2i. 

Beginning  on  April  14  seven  plantations  and  one  nursery  were 
inspected  for  pine  infection.  One  plantation  contained  several 
fruiting  specimens  of  the  rust  and  in  another  two  suspected  trees 
were  removed.  In  the  remaining  plantations  and  in  the  nursery, 
no  sign  of  rust  was  found. 

A  crew  of  five  men  organized  a  camp  in  Norfolk  on  I\Iay  t 
and  carried  on  eradication,  scouting  and  checking  until  September 
15.  Some  8,000  acres  in  the  towns  of  Norfolk,  Colebrook  and 
North  Canaan  were  covered  and  39,000  Ribes  bushes  were  removed 
and  destroyed.  Of  this  area,  4,000  acres  was  new  territory  which 
had  not  been  previously  worked.  In  addition  the  crew  scouted 
forest  and  ornamental  plantings  of  imported  stock  in  Litchfield, 
Cornwall,  Norfolk  and  Colebrook  and  found  infections  in  all 
plantations  thus  inspected. 

The  effectiveness  of  Ribes  eradication  cannot  be  determined 
until  sufficient  time  has  elapsed  to  allow  Ribes  grown  from  seed, 
or  from  incompletely  removed  root  crowns,  to  become  large  enough 
so  that  they  can  be  readily  seen.  Furthermore,  on  pines  which 
have  become  infected  since  the  Ribes  were  removed,  the  disease 
would  require  at  least  two  years  to  reach  a  stage  which  could  be 
unmistakably  recognized.  In  order,  therefore,  to  check  up  the 
results  of  previous  Ribes  eradication  in  X^orfolk,  some  4,000  acres 


CONTROL   OF   WHITE    PINE    BLISTER    RUST.  319 

which  were  worked  in   1916,   1917  and   1919  were  reworked  in 
1921  with  the  following  results: 

a.  Some  large  Ribes  missed  in  previous  years  were  found, 
but  these  were  so  few  in  number  per  acre  as  to  be  of  minor  impor- 
tance. Numerous  small  Ribes,  originating  either  from  seed  or 
from  improperly  removed  root  crowns  were  found,  but  the  small 
amount  of  leaf  surface  and  the  fact  that  these  plants  were  usually 
growing  under  dense  shade  reduces  the  liability  of  their  acting 
as  transmitters  of  the  disease  for  several  years.  Judged  by  the 
comparatively  small  number  of  Ribes  found  in  reworking,  the 
first  eradication  appears  to  have  been  fairly  effective  but  the  neces- 
sity for  rescouting  these  areas  after  a  few  years,  and  reworking 
them  if  necessary,  is  indicated. 

b.  The  number  of  pines  showing  infection  which  had  occurred 
since  eradication  was  almost  negligible.  In  contrast  with  this,  on 
an  area  from  which  Ribes  had  not  been  removed  prior  to  1921, 
twenty-seven  pine  infections  were  found,  70%  of  which  took  place 
in  1918  and  1919. 

During  the  winter  of  1920  and  1921  scouts  had  discovered  new 
infections  on  native  pine  in  several  additional  towns  in  Litchfield 
County.  Prior  to  this  time,  the  only  known  infection  on  native 
pine  was  in  the  Norfolk-Colebrook  region.  Careful  investigation 
of  these  newly  located  infections  indicated  that  control  must  be 
undertaken  on  a  much  larger  scale.  It  was  considered  advisable, 
however,  to  secure  further  information  as  a  basis  for  future  vi/ork 
in  the  new  areas.  During  the  summer  and  fall,  therefore,  a  pre- 
liminary survey  of  the  towns  of  Cornwall,  Canaan,  Salisbury  and 
a  part  of  North  Canaan  was  completed.  The  towns  were  sub- 
divided into  blocks  for  each  of  which  observations  were  made  on 
the  prevalence  of  Ribes,  amount  and  character  of  pine  infection, 
and  other  factors  bearing  on  control.  Pine  infection  was  found 
to  be  quite  generally  distributed  over  all  the  territory  scouted  and 
in  some  places  it  was  very  heavy.  Ribes  were  plentiful  but  not 
as  abundant  as  in  the  Norfolk  region. 

During  November  a  scout  covered  practically  all  the  towns 
along  the  Rhode  Island  line  inspecting  native  pine  but  was  unable 
to  locate  any  infection. 

The  survey  made  in  Pomfret  in  1919  was  checked  up  this  year. 
Four  fruiting  infections  on  pine  were  found  at  the  Bowditch  estate 
and  one  new  infection  on  ornamental  pine  about  one-half  mile  to 
the  south.  The  cultivated  Ribes  scouted  in  1919  showed  less  infec- 
tion in  1921  than  in  the  former  year. 

On  July  I,  1921  the  federal  allotment  for  blister  rust  control  in 
Connecticut  was  cut  from  $5,000  to  $2,000.  Moreover  the  Secre- 
tary of  Agriculture  ruled  that  this  allotment  should  be  used  for 
education,  demonstration  and  supervision,  but  not  for  eradication 
as  in  previous  years.     The  federal  money  has  therefore  been  used 


320  CONNECTICUT    EXPERIMENT    STATION    BULLETIN    237. 

since  July  i  to  pay  part  of  the  salary  of  a  member  of  the  Experi- 
ment Station  staff  whose  time  is  largely  spent  in  supervising  the 
control  work.  As  a  result  of  this  reduction  in  the  federal  funds 
available,  the  amount  of  control  work  which  can  be  done  with  the 
present  state  appropriation  is  greatly  reduced.  Moreover  the 
disease  has  recently  been  found  in  alarming  amounts  in  several 
new  sections.  To  check  its  spread,  prompt  action  is  necessary,  or 
much  young  pine  will  be  killed  before  reaching  merchantable  size. 
It  is  imperative,  therefore,  that  owners  of  pine  cooperate  in  the 
control  work,  since  state  and  federal  funds  are  wholly  inadequate 
to  care  for  the  present  situation. 

Future  Control  Work. 

Blister  rust  control  has  been  in  the  experimental  stage  during 
the  past  six  years.  Although  its  principles  were  well  understood 
in  European  countries  they  had  never  been  practiced  extensively 
there,  and  many  points  in  the  life  history  of  the  disease  were  not 
thoroughly  understood.  Its  characteristics  ^nd  life  history  are 
now  well  known  as  a  result  of  the  exhaustive  studies  which 
have  been  made  in  this  country  by  federal  and  state  agents.  There 
are  still  many  scientific  points  not  fully  understood  and  investi- 
gational studies  must  be  continued,  but  the  practicability  of  control 
methods  has  been  firmly  established.  The  cooperative  work  with 
the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry  in  the  various  states  has  demon- 
strated that  the  application  of  simple  field  methods  at  a  moderate 
cost  per  acre  will  hold  the  disease  absolutely  in  check. 

These  control  methods  should  be  carried  out  locally  by  pine 
owners  themselves,  since  they  are  the  ones  directly  benefited  by 
the  results  secured.  Public  funds  should  be  used  for  supervision, 
for  education  and  for  further  experimental  work,  but  not,  as  in 
the  past,  for  actual  field  control  on  a  large  scale.  Education  of 
pine  owners  through  state  and  federal  agencies  is  essential,  because 
many  of  them  do  not  realize  the  value  of  their  young  pine  or  the 
necessity  of  protecting  it  from  the  rust. 

On  average  quality  forest  soil  which  could  not  profitably  be 
used  for  agriculture,  white  pine  either  self-sown  or  planted  will, 
in  40  to  50  years,  produce  a  gross  revenue  of  over  $200  per  acre, 
as  contrasted  with  $75  per  acre  if  the  land  grows  only  hardwoods. 
Unless  the  blister  rust  is  kept  under  control,  however,  it  may  and 
probably  will,  destroy  the  pine  before  it  reaches  merchantable 
size,  as  the  greatest  danger  is  to  trees  less  than  15  feet  high  to 
which  the  disease  is  fatal  in  a  very  few  years. 

Assistance  must  be  given  pine  owners  in  recognizing  the  disease, 
for  its  presence  on  pine  is  very  deceptive.  It  can  be  identified 
at  the  end  of  the  first  year  only  with  the  aid  of  a  microscope. 
After  the  second  year  a  careful  scrutiny  will  reveal  its  presence. 


CONTROL   OF    WHITE    PINE    BLISTER    RUST.  32I 

although   to   an   untrained   eye   a   tree   already   diseased   beyond 
recovery  may  outwardly  seem  to  be  healthy. 

Supervision  of  Ribes  eradication  by  state  or  federal  agents  is 
of  great  importance.  Unless  the  work  is  done  with  sufficient 
thoroughness  to  remove  practically  all  the  Ribes  in  the  vicinity 
of  pine  stands,  the  protection  secured  will  not  be  sufficient  to 
warrant  the  expense  incurred.  A  trained  supervisor  will  be  able 
to  maintain  the  efficiency  of  the  work  and  to  reduce  its  cost  by 
eliminating  areas  where  Ribes  are  not  sufficiently  abundant  to 
require  eradication. 

The  National  Situation. 

The  introduction  of  this  disease  into  the  United  States  and  its 
subsequent  spread  has  brought  about  a  condition  very  dilTerent 
from  that  in  Europe.  Our  eastern  white  pine,  sugar  pine,  limber 
pine  and  western  white  pine  were  formerly  used  quite  extensively 
in  western  Europe  for  forest  and  ornamental  planting.  On 
account  of  damage  by  the  blister  rust  the  use  of  these  trees  is  now 
being  discontinued  because  the  cultivated  black  currant  is  more 
highly  prized  for  its  fruit  than  the  American  soft  pines  for  their 
lumber.  In  this  country  the  necessity  for  protecting  the  five 
needled  pines  at  the  expense  of  Ribes  should  be  beyond  question, 
because  of  the  greater  importance  and  value  of  pine  lumber  as 
compared  with  currants  and  gooseberries. 

In  the  northeastern  United  States  where  the  rust  was  generally 
introduced  some  twelve  years  ago  the  disease,  on  account  of  its 
deceptive  character,  became  firmly  established  before  the  damage 
it  might  do  was  generally  realized.  In  many  parts  of  the  range 
of  the  eastern  white  pine,  10%  to  15%  of  all  the  trees  of  this 
species  are  infected  and  in  some  areas  infection  runs  as  high  as 
100%.  This  condition  is  very  serious  because  much  of  the  present 
crop  of  young  pine  will  be  killed  before  it  is  large  enough  to  cut 
and  because,  if  the  rust  is  not  controlled  in  the  immediate  future, 
it  may  become  so  prevalent  as  to  render  the  use  of  white  pine 
impossible  in  the  regeneration  of  our  forests. 

In  Connecticut  the  situation  is  not  as  bad  as  in  other  New 
England  states,  because  the  area  in  which  blister  rust  can  become 
serious  is  limited  to  about  500  square  miles  in  northern  Litchfield 
County.  This  is  the  only  section  of  the  state  where  wild  Ribes 
are  abundant.  It  is  very  probable  that  infection  will  occur  at 
many  other  points  because  of  the  presence  of  cultivated  Ribes, 
but  it  is  believed  that  such  infections  will  be  quite  local  and  easily 
controlled. 

In  the  western  states  the  danger  from  blister  rust  is  one  of  the 
future  rather  than  of  the  present.  Agents  of  the  Bureau  of  Plant 
Industry  are  constantly  on  the  watch  for  its  appearance  and  every 


32  2         CONNECTICUT    EXPERIMENT    STATION    BULLETIN    237. 

possible  means  of  enforcing  the  quarantine  against  the  shipment 
of  Ribes  and  live  needled  pines  into  the  west  are  being  used. 
Very  recently  (November  1921)  an  infection  on  eastern  white 
pine  planted  in  southern  British  Columbia  has  Ijeen  discovered,  and 
since  that  time  several  infections  on  western  white  pine  have  been 
found  over  the  line  in  the  state  of  Washington.  However,  these 
infections  have  apparently  been  located  before  the  disease  has 
spread  to  any  extent,  and  with  sufficient  funds  it  should  be  possible 
to  control  it.  Nevertheless,  the  danger  of  its  becoming  established 
in  the  west  is  very  great.  A  strict  enforcement  of  the  federal 
quarantine  and  continued  vigilance  on  the  part  of  federal  scouts 
will  be  necessary  to  prevent  its  introduction  and  spread  into  a 
region  where  control  may  prove  impossible. 

The  territory  between  British  Columbia  and  Mexico  includes  the 
range  of  the  western  white  pine  and  sugar  pine  which  are  very 
important  timber  trees.  Several  other  five  needled  species  found 
in  this  section,  while  valuable  to  some  extent  for  lumber,  are  even 
more  valuable  as  a  covering  for  high  mountain  water-sheds. 
Moreover,  there  are  more  than  60  species  of  Ribes  native  to  this 
region.  This  combination  of  several  species  of  pine  susceptible 
to  the  rust  and  an  extraordinarily  large  number  of  Ribes  species 
affords  ideal  conditions  for  the  development  and  spread  of  the 
disease  throughout  the  entire  range  of  the  western  five  needled 
pines. 


NEW  INVESTIGATIONS  BY  THE 
BOTANICAL  DEPARTMENT. 

Though  the  general  life  history  of  the  blister  rust  had  pre- 
viously been  worked  out  in  Europe  there  were  some  lesser  phases, 
unknown  or  in  doubt,  when  the  botanical  investigations  were  first 
undertaken  by  Doctors  Clinton  and  McCormick  of  this  Station. 
The  life  history  in  general  has  been  covered  by  their  work,  but 
special  emphasis  was  laid  upon  the  doubtful  or  unknown  points. 
A  part  of  these  investigations  have  been  published  in  Bulletin  214 
(pp.  428-459)  of  this  Station,  and  in  papers  read  before  the  Blister 
Rust  Conferences  and  the  Botanical  Society  of  America.  Addi- 
tional details  will  be  given  in  a  bulletin  of  the  Station  to  be  pub- 
lished during  1922. 

The  main  new  points  brought  out  in  their  investigations  were 
along  two  lines.  First,  as  regards  the  point  of  entrance  of  the 
fungus  in  the  pine,  it  was  shown  by  artificial  infections  that  this 
takes  place  through  the  leaves,  and  that  a  very  definite  method  is 
followed.  The  germinating  sporidia  gain  entry  by  a  germ  tube 
through  the  stomates,  or  breathing  pores,  into  the  interior  of  the 


NEW    BOTANICAL    INVESTIGATIONS.  323 

leaf  and  immediately  form  an  enlargement  which  may  have  several 
functions,  such  as  a  hold  fast,  storehouse  for  food,  etc.  From 
this  swelling-  an  infection  thread  proceeds  through  the  stomatal 
cavity  and  comes  in  contact  with  the  leaf  cells.  A  tube  is  sent 
into  the  cell  for  food,  and  then  a  vigorous  growth  of  threads 
results  in  the  intercellular  spaces,  in  time  forming  a  sclerotial 
mass  of  fungous  threads.  This  development  kills  the  green  color- 
ing matter  of  the  cells,  with  the  result  that  a  golden-yellow  spot 
shows  on  the  leaf  near  the  spot  where  the  fungus  entered.  In 
time  the  fungous  threads  come  in  contact  with  the  food  carrying 
ducts  of  the  leaf,  and  then  in  an  inconspicuous  manner  rapidly 
work  lengthwise  of  the  leaf,  especially  downward,  until  they 
reach  the  bark,  where  a  vigorous  development  takes  place  resulting 
in  the  swelling  already  noted.  These  facts  have  all  been  confirmed 
by  similar  observations  on  infections  taking  place  in  nature.  While 
natural  infection  of  the  leaves  takes  place  in  the  fall,  the  external 
evidence,  through  the  golden  yellow  spots  on  the  leaves,  is  not 
conspicuous  until  the  following  spring  or  early  summer. 

The  second  point  brought  out  was  that  not  only  the  five  needled 
pines  but  also  seedlings  of  certain  two  and  three  needled  pines 
could  be  artificially  infected,  some  as  readily  and  vigorously  as 
the  white  pine.  4Dn  some  of  these  hosts  the  infection  has  proceeded 
as  far  as  any  that  has  taken  place  in  infection  work  at  this  Station 
with  white  pine  of  the  same  age :  namely,  to  where  the  infected 
stems  produced  the  pycnial  stage.  Altogether  some  thirty  different 
species  of  seedlings  of  the  genus  Pinus  have  been  experimented 
with,  and  at  least  fifteen  of  these  have  become  infected  in  the 
leaves.  The  varying  vigor  of  the  rust's  development  indicates 
difference  in  resistance  of  the  species  inoculated,  so  that  no  doubt 
with  certain  of  them  infection  proceeds  no  further  than  invasion 
of  the  leaf,  and  so  fails  of  true  infection. 

As  regards  infection  of  Ribes  with  the  aeciopores  from  white 
pine,  successful  inoculations  have  been  made  with  twenty-six 
species.  Some  species  show  much  more  resistance  to  infection 
than  do  others,  cultivated  bkck  currants  being  one  of  the  most 
susceptible. 


A  SURVEY  OF  WHITE  PINE  IN  CONNECTICUT. 

The  pine  survey  for  Connecticut,  which  was  made  during  the 
winters  of  1919-1920  and  1920-1921,  has  been  briefly  referred  to 
in  other  parts  of  this  report.  The  object  of  the  work  was  to 
furnish  data  on  the  amount  and  location  of  white  pine  growing 
within  the  state.  As  such  figures  would  manifestly  not  be  accurate 
for  any  extended  period,  it  was  decided  to  accomplish  the  work 
at  as  low  a  cost  as  possible  consistent  with  reasonable  accuracy. 


324         CONNECTICUT    EXPERIMENT    STATION    BULLETIN    237. 

Since  there  is  no  considerable  amount  of  white  pine  outside  of 
Litchfield,  Hartford,  Tolland,  Windham  and  New  London 
Counties,  the  survey  was  limited  to  such  portions  of  these  counties 
as  were  known  to  contain  pine. 

The  U.  S.  G.  S.  topographic  sheets  were  used  for  the  mapping. 
With  the  aid  of  a  pocket  compass  and  pacing,  the  boundaries  of 
the  various  blocks  of  pine  were  sketched  in.  Three  general  types 
were  plotted  upon  the  map. 

a.  Pine  reproduction ;  stands  under  25  years  of  age  with  pine 
forming  60%  or  more  of  the  mixture. 

b.  Pure  pine ;  stands  over  25  years  of  age  with  pine  forming 
60%  or  more  of  the  mixture. 

c.  Pine-hardwoods ;  mixed  stands  wnth  other  species  forming 
more  than  40%  of  the  mixture. 

The  country  was  divided  into  blocks  with  the  highways  as 
boundaries  and  further  subdivided  into  the  various  types,  for  each 
of  which  notes  were  made  showing: — 

a.  Age  class.  c.     Area  in  acres. 

b.  Percentage  of  pine.  d.     Volume  in  board  feet  per 

acre. 

Areas  were  obtained  by  scaling  the  map.  Age  was  roughly 
determined  by  counting  the  whorls  of  branches.  The  estimates  of 
percentage  and  value  were,  of  necessity,  made  largely  by  eye  but 
were  checked  by  the  frequent  laying  out  of  plots  on  which  more 
careful  estimates  were  made.  In  practically  all  cases  supplemental 
notes  regarding  the  character  of  the  timber,  reproduction,  etc., 
were  kept  for  each  type. 

From  field  data  thus  gathered  it  was  possible  to  compile  figures 
on  area  of  reproduction,  area  of  pure  pine,  area  of  pine  in  mixture 
with  other  species  and  the  stand  in  board  feet  for  each  town 
surveyed.  Figures  of  total  forest  area  were  taken  from  the 
Forest  Survey  of  Connecticut,  published  in  the  annual  report  of 
this  Station  for  191 5.  Fifty-two  towns  were  covered  in  whole  or 
in  part.  A  summary  of  the  information  for  each  county  by  towns 
follows. 


SURVEY    OF    WHITE    PINE. 


325 


HARTFORD  COUNTY.' 

Pure  Pine  Pure  Pine-Hard-  Forest  Stand  of 

Town               Reproduction         Pine  woods  Area  Pine 

Acres  Acres  Acres  Acres  B.  F. 

Avon    686  445  no  7,400  1,260,000 

Bloomfield    34  38  20  4,350  430,ooo 

Canton  127  479  78  11,600  370,000 

E.  Granby 386  198  ■■  4,30O  240,000 

E.Hartford 35  123  ..  2,100  800,000 

E.  Windsor    16  17  125  3,400  450,000 

Enfield  832  765  424  7,ooo  6,760,000 

Farmington    500  70  •  •  •  8,000  710,000 

Granby    888  923  i,446  17,000  5,550,ooo 

Hartland  108  9  613  15,700  350,ooo 

Manchester    84  212  45  5,700  1,650,000 

Simsbury    1,216  1,252  150  10,500  8,830,000 

S.  Windsor   12  92  145  4,800  990,000 

Suffield    215  203  115  5,450  450,000 

Windsor    30  455  352  7,300  4,210,000 

Windsor  Locks 685  271  ...  2,550  890,000 

Totals    5,854  5,612  3,623  117,150  33,940,000 


LITCHFIELD  COUNTY. 

Pure  Pine  Pure  Pine-Hard- 
Town              Reproduction            Pine  woods 
Acres  Acres  Acres 

Barkhamsted    1,129  336  3,141 

Canaan    157  333  9,587 

Colebrook   1,211  964  8,613 

Cornwall   700  444  803 

Goshen    20  133  192 

Harwinton    75  36  150 

Litchfield    35  dj  73 

Morris   28  6  40 

New  Hartford   781  257  1,092 

Norfolk  . . . . ; 835  1,437  10,394 

North  Canaan 768  889  3,928 

Salisbury    496  1,424  6,581 

Sharon 42  862 

Thomaston 3  30 

Torrington    46  154  55 

Winchester  433  185  2,813 

Totals    6,714  6,710  48,354 


Forest 

Stand  of 

Area 

Pine 

Acres 

B.   F. 

15,300 

5,480,000 

15,500 

1,372,000 

15,400 

6,120,000 

18,100 

6,920,000 

15,100 

2,040,000 

11,700 

340,000 

16,000 

780,000 

3,550 

130,000 

13,000 

2,250,000 

22,300 

12,100,000 

5,850 

1,980,000 

17,800 

10,420,000 

17,000 

■     310,000 

4,550 

60,000 

16,200 

680,000 

12,700 

1,400,000 

220,050  52,382,000 


NEW  LONDON  COUNTY. 

Pure  Pine  Pure  Pine-Hard-  Forest  Stand  of 

Town               Reproduction  Pine  woods  A  ea  Pine 

Acres  Acres  Acres  Acres  B.  F. 

Griswold   25  5  725  9,450  40,000 

Voluntown    250  437  8,812  22,500  4,910,000 

Totals    275  442  9,537  31,950  4,950,000 


326  CONNECTICUT    EXPERIMENT    STATION    BULLETIN    237. 


TOLLAND  COUNTY. 

Pure  Pine  Pure  Pine-Hard- 
Town              Reproduction  Pine  woods 
Acres  Acres  Acres 

Elllington    20  40  20 

Mansfield 3 

Somers    392  424  280 

Stafford    38  447  5,34i 

Tolland   20  58  89 

Union  1,000  i,594  9.831 

Willington    -JZ  32  I45 

Totals    1,543  2,598  15,706 


Forest 

Stand  of 

Area 

Pine 

Acres 

B.  F. 

11,300 

90,000 

12,600 

35.000 

9,000 

1,800,000 

28,800 

2,980,000 

16,500 

250,000 

15,000 

15,920,000 

15,900 

250,000 

109,100 


21,325,000 


WINDHAM  COUNTY. 

Pure  Pine  Pure  Pine-Hard- 
Town               Reproduction  Pine  woods 
Acres  Acres  Acres 

Ashf  ord 342  3,093 

Brooklyn  75  69  1,770 

Canterbury 87  932 

Eastford   150  417  3,261 

Killingly   200  274  ii,556 

Plainfield    50  36  1,873 

Pomfret 100  42  2,775 

Putnam    100  409  3,495 

Sterling  50  30  4,210 

Thompson  400  672  11,760 

Woodstock    600  1,352  11,836 

Totals    1,725  3,730  56,561 


Forest 

Stand  of 

Area 

Pine 

Acres 

B    F. 

14,600 

1,590,000 

7,500 

320,000 

12,800 

400.000 

13,100 

4,720.000 

19,100 

1,020,000 

13,000 

160,000 

12,500 

440,000 

S.55O 

1,290,000 

13,600 

300,000 

16,400 

2,480,000 

19,800 

10,050.000 

147,950 

22,770,009 

TOTALS  BY  COUNTIES. 

Pure  Pine  Pure  Pine-Hard- 
County             Reproduction  Pine  woods 
Acres  Acres  Acres 

Hartford    5,854  5,612  3,623 

Litchfield    6,714  6,710  48,354 

New  London  275  442  9,537 

Tolland   1,543  2,598  15,706 

Windliam    1,725  3,730  56,561 

Totals    16,111  19,092  133,781 


Forest 

Stand  of 

Area 

Pine 

Acres 

B.  F. 

117,150 

33,940.000 

220,050 

52. 382.000 

31,950 

4.050,000 

109,100 

21, 325, OlX) 

147.950 

22,770,000 

626,200 

135.367.000 

In  the  remainino^  117  towns  there  are  scattered  jilantations  and 
native  stands  of  white  pine  which  should  ]-)e  inchided  in  totals  for 
the  state.  The  following  figures  are  therefore  thought  to  be 
conservative. 


Pure  Pine 

Reproduction 

Acres 


Pure 
Pine 
Acres 


Pine- Hard- 
Woods. 
Acres 


Forest 
Area 
Acres 


Stand  of 
Pine 
B.  F. 


State  of  Connecticut    20,000        20,000         150,000        1,483,300         150,000,000 


University  of 
Connecticut 

Libraries 


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